The Global CSAM fight > 95 arrests for CSAM in Europe and Latin America - Interpol; 28 Arrests in Canada and Europe - Europol; 51 CSAM victims ID'd by global taskforce - Europol

 

95 arrested in operation targeting distribution of child sexual abuse material

Seventeen countries dismantle messaging groups sharing 

and monetizing abuse content

Panama was one of 17 countries that participated in a series of four operations coordinated by INTERPOL.

LYON, France – An international effort to disrupt the production and distribution of child sexual exploitation and abuse material has led to the arrest of 95 suspects. 

Seventeen countries from Latin America and Europe have participated in a series of four parallel law enforcement operations (March 2026 – September 2026), each targeting a different aspect of the dissemination and commercialization of child sexual abuse content through messaging applications and cryptocurrencies. 

These platforms are increasingly used to groom children, coordinate abuse, connect offenders and receive payment for illegal content. They also enable the recirculation of abuse content, resulting in continued revictimization of children.  

The INTERPOL-coordinated initiative led to the execution of 127 search warrants and the rescue of one child. The arrested suspects came from 17 different countries – approximately 89 per cent were male and 11 per cent were female. 

Material seized during the investigation is expected to lead to further identifications of offenders and children at risk, as well as additional safeguarding action.  

Stephen Fry, INTERPOL Executive Director Investigation Support, said:  

“Intelligence gathered during these operations exposes, once again, the growing role of digital platforms in the monetization of child sexual abuse. Effective cross-border cooperation between law enforcement and the private sector has never been more urgent. 

"Behind every file is a child who was abused, and who is revictimized every time that image recirculates. Wherever offenders move, we have to move faster.” 

 

In Ecuador, arrests are made in relation to the operation targeting the dissemination and commercialization of CSAM.

As part of these operations, Colombian police safeguarded a five-year-old victim and arrested the victim’s parent, who had been producing and selling abuse material online. INTERPOL’s Child Sexual Exploitation database was key to the case breakthrough, linking a series of files depicting the same child, some dating back to when the victim was one year old. 

Authorities in Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru and Spain detected the participation of adolescents in several messaging groups, both requesting and distributing child abuse material.  

In Ecuador, an individual was identified as being part of a group sharing abuse content. A subsequent investigation and analysis of devices revealed more than 4,000 files and approximately 15GB of child abuse images. 

Authorities in Panama reported the arrest of the administrator of a group disseminating abusive material depicting children. The group had more than 700 users. 

Argentinian police reported the arrest of a suspect that was in contact with more than 260 girls from different countries. The suspect, accused of sextortion of minors, would request increasingly explicit videos and images from the victims, threatening them when they tried to refuse. 

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28 arrests in international strike against child sexual exploitation

Three children were safeguarded during the operation

Authorities from seven countries, supported by Europol, have carried out a major operation against child sexual exploitation, leading to the arrest of 28 individuals. As a result, three children have been safeguarded.

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The operation, conducted from late May to mid-June 2026, took place in Canada, Czechia, Germany, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland. It also led to the seizure of more than 460 items, including electronic devices, crypto wallets, drugs and large quantities of doping substances. The operation is ongoing and further arrests are expected.

Cryptocurrency to access the dark web

All suspects are men aged between 22 and 54. One of them was extensively using artificial intelligence in order to generate illegal material. Some of the victims were part of another suspect’s immediate family.

Investigators believe the suspects used cryptocurrency to pay for access to dark web forums, where they could download or view videos of children being abused. They will face charges for storing, acquiring, and sharing child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

The investigation was led by Norwegian law enforcement, which in 2025 developed an innovative method to trace cryptocurrency transactions. This method helped investigators identify individuals paying for CSAM access in this operation. Two sellers of such material were also identified thanks to the tracing method.

Europol’s role in the operation

Europol provided crucial operational support and coordination throughout the investigation. Its experts cross-checked and enriched data with operational intelligence, producing key analytical products. Europol also assisted Norwegian authorities in distributing evidence packages to all participating countries and agencies.

The fight against child sexual exploitation remains a key priority for Europol. In addition to its support in preventing and detecting crimes related to the sexual abuse and exploitation of children, Europol is currently running two major initiatives in this field.

• The platform Stop Child Abuse – Trace an Object invites the public to examine objects linked to cold cases and report any recognition. Even the smallest detail can be significant in helping identify and protect a child who has been sexually abused. 
• The digital platform Help4U was launched in November 2025 to support children and teenagers affected by sexual abuse or online exploitation. The service is designed to be simple, private, and accessible, helping young people access trusted guidance, understand their rights, and connect with appropriate support services.

Participating countries in the operation

• Canada: Canada National Child Exploitation Crime Centre
• Czechia: Police of the Czech Republic
• Germany: Germany State Bureau of Criminal Investigation (Landeskriminalamt) Baden-Württemberg 510 Cybercrime; SO42 Bundeskriminalamt, Child Sexual Exploitation Unit Federal Criminal Police Office.
• Norway: National Criminal Investigation Service (NCIS)
• Poland: Central Cybercrime Bureau (CBZC)
• Sweden: Sweden NOA UNDERRÄTTELSE ISÖB
• Switzerland: Federal Office of Police fedpol (Bundesamt für Polizei fedpol), Valais Cantonal Police (Police cantonale valaisanne), Bern Cantonal Police (Kantonspolizei Bern), Aargau Cantonal Police (Kantonspolizei Aargau), Nidwalden Cantonal Police (Kantonspolizei Nidwalden)
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51 children identified during international taskforce against child sexual exploitation

Over 20 countries participated in the operation hosted at Europol’s headquarters in The Hague

A total of 51 sexually abused children were identified during the 17th edition of the Victim Identification Task Force (VIDTF17). The operation took place over the course of two weeks, from 8 to 19 September 2025, at Europol’s headquarters. 27 experts from Europol, INTERPOL, and 22 countries worldwide worked shoulder to shoulder to analyse images of unidentified abused children, to identify and safeguard them.

The experts participating in the task force analysed over 300 datasets depicting victims of child sexual exploitation (CSE). The analysts saw victims of both genders, from toddlers to teenagers, with a variety of ethnic backgrounds and of many different nationalities. Following the operation, national authorities were sent 213 leads for further investigation.

Catherine De Bolle

Europol Executive Director

Child sexual abuse material may be created in a single room, yet spread instantly across the world, inflicting lifelong trauma on children. Through advanced analysis, digital forensics and close international cooperation, Europol can sometimes locate the very room where abuse has taken place. But too often, we stand outside that door, knowing what happened inside yet lacking the key to rescue the child. The 17th edition of Europol’s Victim Identification Taskforce was a remarkable success. Yet we must ask ourselves: How many more children could we have safeguarded if we had the right digital tools and the right keys? That is why we must not confine ourselves to old ways of thinking. We must take bold and innovative steps to protect every child we can

Growing CSAM and sophisticated tools: A race against the clock

The Victim Identification Task Force (VIDTF) was first organised in 2014. Since then, the number of analysed datasets has increased exponentially, alongside Europol’s database, which was created in 2006 and now holds over 111 million unique photos and videos of child sexual exploitation.

In addition to the growing volume of images, the exchange of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) now appears to be much more frequent than in the past, likely due to the accessibility and large storage capacity of mobile phones. In parallel, AI-generated CSAM has become one of the main ways offenders produce, acquire and store such material.

Over the years, offenders have also gained access to more sophisticated tools and resources. Today, they even share tutorials on dark web forums explaining how to create hyper-realistic AI-generated CSAM.

Over 1,000 victims safeguarded by bringing partners together 

National authorities often lack the tools and human resources to cope with the amount of CSAM being created and disseminated. This is why the Victim Identification Task Force is so valuable in the fight against child sexual exploitation: It brings together experts of multiple nationalities, facilitates communication and strengthens cooperation between law enforcement agencies worldwide.

Over the previous sixteen VIDTF editions, authorities safeguarded a total of 1,010 victims, arrested 301 offenders, analysed 8,005 datasets and disseminated 2,266 intelligence packages to Europol’s partners. One of the most memorable success stories took place in September 2024, during the 15th VIDTF held at Europol’s headquarters. 

One of the investigators analysed a video depicting brutal sexual abuse of a five-year-old, committed by an adult male. As the details in the video were insufficient to identify the subjects or the country where it was produced, further checks were made against Europol’s databases. This led to the discovery of a second video depicting the same subjects engaged in similar acts. 

When the cross-checks performed pointed to France, French specialists participating in the VIDTF took over the analysis, while their colleagues in France initiated an investigation. The victim depicted in both videos was identified and safeguarded, and the offender was arrested.

Further investigations revealed that the suspect had sexually abused and tortured two other victims, aged two years and six months, alongside four other men. The five offenders had met in groups hosted on end-to-end encrypted platforms. They had also recorded themselves abusing the three children and shared the files online. All the victims were rescued and safeguarded.

Europol’s call: Trace an Object

Europol has recently released new pictures to the platform “Stop Child Abuse – Trace an Object”, which calls on all citizens to examine objects from child sexual abuse cold cases and see if they recognise any of them. No clue is too small: Even the smallest detail could help identify and safeguard a sexually abused child.

The main goal is to trace the origin of the depicted objects. Anyone who recognises one can provide information to Europol anonymously. Once the country or location is identified, Europol will inform the competent law enforcement authority to investigate further. The aim is to speed up the identification of both the victim and the offender.

The following partners took part in the Victim Identification Task Force 17: 

• Australia: Australian Federal Police (AFP)
• Belgium: Federal Police Belgium
• Bulgaria: Cybercrime Directorate (GDCOC)
• Canada: Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)
• Croatia: Criminal Police Directorate, National Cybercrime Department
• Denmark: Danish National Police - National Cyber Crime Center
• Estonia: Police and Border Guard Board
• France: Police nationale (Office Mineurs - Protection des mineurs), Gendarmerie nationale (Centre de lutte contre les criminalités numériques)
• Germany: Federal Criminal Police Office
• Ireland: An Garda Síochána
• Italy: State Police (Polizia di Stato- Servizio Polizia Postale- C.N.C.P.O.)
• Malta: Malta Police Force (Il-Korp tal- Pulizija ta’ Malta)
• Netherlands: National Police (Politie)
• Norway: KRIPOS (NCIS)
• Poland: Central Cybercrime Bureau
• Romania: Police Directorate for Countering Organised Criminality
• Serbia: Service for Combating High-Tech Crime, Directorate of Police
• Slovakia: Cybercrime Unit, National Center for Specific Crimes, Presidium of the Police Force
• Spain: National Police (Policía Nacional), Guardia Civil
• Sweden: Police Authority
• UK: National Crime Agency (NCA)
• USA: Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations
• INTERPOL
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